Landing gear

ABSTRACT

An aircraft landing gear ( 1, 21 ) is arranged such that in its deployed position it is configured to reduce, during the approach on landing, the noise generated by the interaction of the landing gear ( 1, 21 ) and the air flowing past the landing gear. Various means are described to reduce the amount of turbulent air flow generated in the region of the landing gear ( 1, 21 ), including inverting and fairing the nose-gear shock-absorbing leg ( 3, 4 ), providing faired twin in-line oleos ( 2   a   , 2   b ,) and providing fairings ( 11 ) that produce shielding air curtains ( 24 ).

The present invention relates to reducing aircraft noise. In particular,the invention relates to landing gear designed to reduce the noisegenerated by the interaction of the landing gear and the air flowingpast it during flight, especially during the approach of the aircraft onlanding.

It is desirous to reduce the noise generated by aircraft, for example,to lessen disruption or inconvenience, resulting from aircraft noise,caused to the public on the ground near airports. A significant amountof noise is generated by the interaction of the aircraft and the airflowing past it, which results in turbulent flows and consequentlynoise. It is particularly important to reduce noise created duringapproach of the aircraft on landing. During approach, a significantcontribution to the amount of noise that the aircraft makes is made bythe landing gear, which is typically deployed early for landing forsafety reasons. The deployment of the landing gear increases drag andassists deceleration of the aircraft. During take-off, noise from thelanding gear is a less significant factor because engine noise isgenerally greater and because the landing gear is generally stowed atthe earliest opportunity to reduce drag and aid take-off. During normalflight, the landing gear of an aircraft is typically stowed in a landinggear bay, the bay being closed off by doors so that no part of thelanding gear is subjected to the air flow.

It is an aim of the present invention to provide a landing gear thatgenerates less noise compared to a landing gear of the same size thathas not been adapted, designed or manufactured in accordance with thepresent invention.

According to the present invention there are provided variousarrangements of aircraft each being so arranged that during approach ofthe aircraft on landing (with the landing gear exposed to the airflow)the noise generated by the interaction of the landing gear and the airflowing past the landing gear is reduced. Thus in each case the landinggear is advantageously arranged or configured so that the noisegenerated during landing of the aircraft by means of the landing gearinteracting with air flowing past the landing gear is reduced comparedwith an arrangement of the landing gear not having the featuresaccording to the invention, but otherwise being identical. The landinggear or a part thereof may for example be designed to reduce, in use,the amount of turbulent air flow generated in the region of the landinggear. Alternatively, or additionally, the landing gear or a part thereofmay be designed to streamline, in use, the flow of air past the landinggear. The landing gear may for example include at least onenoise-reducing element. The noise-reducing element may of course performanother function. The noise-reducing element may for example be in theform of one or more separate fairings. The noise-reducing element may bein the form of a conventional component of the aircraft landing gearthat has been shaped or positioned in such a way as to reduce noise.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is providedan aircraft landing gear including a plurality of longitudinal loadbearing supports, the supports being arranged in parallel and such that,in use when the landing gear is in an operative position, they arearranged one behind the other in the direction of the air flow. Theinvention, in accordance with this first aspect, also provides anaircraft including landing gear, preferably movable between a deployedposition and a stowed position, wherein the landing gear includes aplurality of longitudinal load bearing supports and a noise reductionfairing, the landing gear being so arranged that, in use when thelanding gear is in its deployed position, the supports are arranged inparallel one behind the other in the direction of the air flow and thenoise reduction fairing at least partially fairs the front load bearingsupport. The noise reduction fairing advantageously diverts air flowaway from noise-generating elements of the landing gear in the region ofthe load bearing supports. Thus, the load bearing supports may beshielded from the full effects of the air-flow and thus noise that wouldotherwise be generated by the interaction of the landing gear and theair flowing past the landing gear may be reduced.

The plurality of longitudinal load bearing supports are preferably soarranged that when the landing gear is in the operative position eachload bearing support is so arranged that the long axis of the support issubstantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft. Atleast one of the load bearing supports may include a shock absorbingelement. The or each shock absorbing element may include a piston andbarrel arrangement. In the case where at least two of the load bearingsupports include shock absorbing elements, one of the shock absorbingelements may advantageously be configured to have a different shockabsorbing capacity from at least one of the other shock absorbingelements. The load bearing supports are conveniently arranged to supportloads when the aircraft is on the ground via wheels mounted on a wheelmounting means such as for example a bogie. Preferably, two of the loadbearing supports are arranged to be able to vary the pitch of a bogie,on which the wheels are mounted. Such an arrangement makes it possiblefor the bogie not to be provided with a separate pitch trimmer. Two ofthe load bearing supports may be configured to withstand significantlydifferent loads. One of the load bearing supports may for example have agreater cross-sectional area or may be made from a different material.One load bearing support being configured to withstand a different loadfrom another of the load bearing supports may be of particular advantagein the case where the supports are arranged to perform a pitch trimmingfunction.

The landing gear may advantageously be arranged such that one or moreservice pipes, cables, conduits, or the like, are provided between atleast two of the longitudinal load bearing supports. By having such anarrangement, the service pipes, cables, conduits, or the like, may beshielded from the air flow. Noise that might otherwise be generated bythe service pipes, cables, conduits, or the like, may therefore bereduced. Preferably two or more, and more preferably more than three,service pipes or conduits may be provided between at least two of thelongitudinal load bearing supports. The service pipes, cables, conduitsor the like may include one or more of the group consisting of pipes forhydraulic fluid, cables for conducting power and/or electronic signals,or other pipes, cables or the like for providing services to parts ofthe landing gear.

The front load bearing support is preferably at least partly faired by afairing element when the landing gear is in its operative position. Thefairing element preferably extends around at least two of the loadbearing supports. The fairing element preferably encompasses, but notnecessarily encases, at least two of the load bearing supports. Thefairing may be substantially oval in cross-section. The cross-sectionmay, and preferably does, vary along its length.

One or more fairings may be provided which is/are configured andarranged as to cause air flow diversion that reduces unwanted noise,especially during approach on landing. The one or more fairings could bearranged not only to divert air away from parts of the landing gear thatgenerate unwanted noise, but also to alter the aerodynamics of thelanding gear so as to indirectly divert air away from such parts.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is thusprovided an aircraft including a noise reduction fairing, the fairingincluding an air-intake that is fed via an air-duct to an air exhaust,the fairing being so shaped that, in use during approach on landing, theair flowing through the air-duct produces a noise-reducing air flow thatdiverts air away from parts of the aircraft that generate unwantednoise. The noise-reducing airflow may, at least in part, flow out of theair-exhaust and/or flow into a second air in-take. In the case where thenoise-reducing airflow flows into a second air in-take, pressuredifferences resulting from the flow of air from the first air-intake ofthe fairing to the air-exhaust may conveniently draw air into the secondin-take, the flow of air into the second in-take forming at least inpart the noise-reducing airflow.

The fairing may be so arranged that the noise-reducing air flow is inthe form of at least a part of an air-curtain. Preferably, the aircurtain so formed assists in diverting air away from parts of thelanding gear that generate unwanted noise. The fairing may thus assistin reducing unwanted noise on landing by means of the air curtainforming a notional extension of the fairing surface.

It will of course be appreciated that the air curtain may not be stablein form and will have a form that varies and is possibly rathercomplicated in shape. The air curtain would almost certainly not forexample be planar in shape. The air curtain may be formed in such a waythat a quiet region is formed between the landing gear and the aircurtain. The quiet region insofar as this aspect of the invention isconcerned may be defined as a region in which the average air velocityis significantly less than the average air velocity in a region on theother side of and adjacent to the air curtain. The quiet region mayalternatively be defined as a region in which the average air velocityis significantly less than the average air velocity that would haveexisted had the air curtain not been present. The quiet region mayalternatively be defined as a region in which the noise generated issignificantly less than the noise that would have been generated had theair curtain not been present. The air-intake is preferably in the formof a ram-intake. The ram-intake may for example be in the form of anopening that is linked directly adjacently to an intake-passageway thatis generally aligned with the direction of the airflow incident on theopening. The air-intake preferably covers an area, which would, if theair-intake were replaced with an extension of the surrounding fairing,cover at least one stagnation point or cover at least the majority of astagnation line. The term stagnation point is well known in the art. Byway of example, the term may simply be defined as the point on asurface, for example a fairing, at which it may be considered the airimpacting against the fairing divides. Alternatively, as a very simpleapproximation, the stagnation point on a surface that is travelling in agiven direction may be considered as being the point at which the normalto the surface is parallel to the direction of travel. Thus a givensurface may have several stagnation points or the surface may have aninfinite number of stagnation points, forming a stagnation line or evena stagnation area. Also, the position of the or each stagnation pointwill vary with the direction of relative motion between the surface andthe fluid through which it moves.

The air duct may include a passageway that is narrower in cross-sectionthan the rest of the air-duct. For example, the passageway may form aventuri tube. Having such a narrowing, or constriction, may increase thevelocity of air flowing through the passageway. Preferably, the speed ofthe noise-reducing airflow is greater than the speed of the airflowentering the air-intake (or if there are two or more air-intakes, thespeed of the airflow entering the air-intake having the lowest airinflow speed). Preferably, the noise-reducing airflow has an averagespeed of over 120%, more preferably over 150% and even more preferablyover 200%, that of the speed of the free-stream airflow relative to theaircraft.

The air exhaust may comprise a plurality of outlets. The plurality ofoutlets may be arranged in series to form an air-flow having a generallyelongate cross-sectional profile immediately downstream of the exhaust.The exhaust may comprise a single outlet, having a generally elongatecross-section.

The noise reduction fairing is advantageously mounted on the landinggear. The noise reduction fairing is advantageously mounted such thatthe noise-reducing air flow diverts air away from parts of the landinggear that generate unwanted noise. Alternatively or additionally, thelanding gear may include a fairing that is so configured and arranged asto cause some of the air flowing in the region of the landing gear toform an air curtain and a quiet region between the landing gear and theair curtain. The landing gear is preferably movable between a deployedposition and a stowed position.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is providedan aircraft including a landing gear, preferably movable between adeployed position and a stowed position, including a load bearingsupport, the support being connected between the upper end of thelanding gear and a wheel assembly at the lower end of the landing gear,the support including a piston and barrel arrangement, the piston beingpositioned closer to the lower end of the landing gear than the barrel,wherein the landing gear includes a noise reduction fairing that fairsthe barrel. There is also provided an aircraft landing gear including aload bearing support, the support including a first end which isattached, or is attachable, to a wheel assembly and a second end, whichis opposite to the first end, and which is attached, or is attachable,to an aircraft, wherein the first and second ends are connected via apiston and barrel arrangement comprising a piston connected to thesecond end and a barrel connected to the first end, the barreladvantageously being arranged and configured to have a streamlinedshape, for example, by being faired. The piston and barrel arrangementmay be in the form of a shock absorber arrangement,as is known in theart.

It is common practice to have a landing gear with the piston and barrelarrangement arranged such that the piston is connected to the lower endof the landing gear (the “first end”) and the barrel is connected to theupper end of the landing gear (the “second end”). Such an arrangementhas become common practice in the art, possibly for reasons associatedwith minimising the total weight of the arrangement. However, we haveovercome this technical prejudice in the art and propose effectively toinvert the piston/barrel arrangement of the landing gear. This inversionof the piston/barrel arrangement makes several features possible thatmay have benefits in terms of noise reduction as is explained in furtherdetail below.

The barrel may be in the form of a conventional cylinder thataccommodates a piston. The barrel conveniently comprises a cylindricalbore having a circular cross-section that accommodates the piston, whichis shaped to fit inside the cylindrical bore. The barrel isadvantageously being arranged and configured to have a streamlinedshape. The noise-reduction fairing is preferably arranged to provide thebarrel with a streamlined shape. For example, the barrel mayadditionally or alternatively be oval, or tear-drop-shaped, incross-sectional shape. The piston may also be streamlined incross-sectional shape, but is advantageously circular in cross-section.

The inversion of the piston and barrel arrangement may also facilitatethe positioning of noise-generating parts or components of the landinggear out of the air-flow and into the interior of the aircraft. Examplesof such components that could be so positioned inside the aircraftinclude the steering actuators and the torque links. It will beunderstood that positioning such components so that they are only partlywithin the interior space of the aircraft will provide some benefit interms of noise reduction and it will therefore be understood that suchcomponents need not be wholly contained within the interior of theaircraft. It is however preferred for the majority of each suchcomponent to be within the aircraft. Preferably, 75% of the or eachcomponent is accommodated inside the aircraft, and more preferably,substantially all of the component is accommodated inside the aircraft.

Advantageously, the piston and barrel arrangement is so configured that,when connected to the aircraft with the landing gear in an operativeposition and the piston and barrel are extended to the normal operatingmaximum extension, the majority of the piston is accommodated inside theaircraft, for example inside the landing gear bay of the aircraft.Preferably, 75% of the exposed part of the piston is accommodated insidethe aircraft, and more preferably, substantially all of the exposed partof the piston is accommodated inside the aircraft, for example insidethe aircraft gear storage cavity (the landing gear bay).

The landing gear may include one or more torque links. Such torque linksmay for example be provided for transmitting loads sustained duringlanding of the aircraft, including for example vertical and/orhorizontal loads caused by steering of the aircraft and/or as a resultof the weight of the aircraft. In that case the piston and barrelarrangement is advantageously so configured that, when the landing gearis in its deployed position and the piston and barrel are extended tothe normal operating maximum extension, the one or more torque links areaccommodated inside the landing gear bay of the aircraft. Preferably,the piston and barrel arrangement is so configured that, when thelanding gear is in its deployed position and the piston and barrel areextended to the normal operating maximum extension, all torque linksassociated with the landing gear that would, if the piston werepositioned closer to the lower end of the landing gear than the barrel,contribute to the noise generated by the interaction of the mechanismsand the airflow, are accommodated inside the landing gear bay of theaircraft. The landing gear may include steering mechanisms for steeringthe wheel assembly, and the piston and barrel arrangement is soconfigured that, when the landing gear is in its deployed position andthe piston and barrel are extended to the normal operating maximumextension, the steering mechanisms are accommodated inside the landinggear bay of the aircraft.

Preferably, the piston and barrel arrangement is so configured that,when the landing gear is in its deployed position and the piston andbarrel are extended to the normal operating maximum extension, allsteering mechanisms associated with the landing gear that would, if thepiston were positioned closer to the lower end of the landing gear thanthe barrel, contribute to the noise generated by the interaction of themechanisms and the airflow, are accommodated inside the landing gear bayof the aircraft.

The landing gear mentioned above in relation to any aspect of theinvention may be one of the main landing gear of the aircraft. Thelanding gear mentioned above in relation to any aspect of the inventionmay be the or one of the nose landing gear of the aircraft. The landinggear may be in the form of a central landing gear, for example generallyin line with central longitudinal axis of the aircraft. The landing gearmay be in the form of a wing gear. Some aspects of the above-mentionedinvention are especially relevant or well suited to particular types oflanding gear. For example, the inversion of the landing gear accordingto the third aspect of the invention is particularly well suited to anose landing gear. Conventionally the nose landing gear of an aircraftis not provided with a bogie on which the wheel(s) are mounted. Thus, inrelation to the aspects of the present invention that are concerned withor relate in some way to a bogie, it is preferred that the landing gearis in the form of a landing gear large enough to warrant the provisionof a bogie (for example a main landing gear).

Aircraft having landing gear that are fixed in position are generallynot designed with noise reduction in mind. The invention is of greaterapplication to larger aircraft, particularly passenger-carryingaircraft, where noise reduction on landing of the aircraft is of greaterrelevance. The landing gear is preferably of a size suitable for use onan aircraft designed to carry more than 50 passengers, and morepreferably more than 100 passengers. Such aircraft generally haveretractable landing gear assemblies.

Above the term “load bearing support” is used herein with reference todifferent aspects of the invention. The or each load bearing support maybe in the form of a column which transfers at least the majority of theload between the wheels to which the landing gear is in use attached andthe body of the aircraft when the aircraft weight is supported by thewheels. The or each load bearing support may be in the form of a columnthat is so positioned as to connect one or more wheels to the aircraft.

Reference is made herein to the landing gear being in an operativeposition. It is intended that the operative position of the landing gearcovers the case where the landing gear is in a position ready forlanding. It may of course be the case that the landing gear is notmovable from its operative position. The present invention is ofparticular application, however, where the landing gear is movable froman operative position (when the landing gear is deployed) to a storedposition. For example, in its stored position the landing gear may bewholly contained within the interior of the aircraft, for example withina landing gear bay.

The aircraft landing gear of the aircraft of the present invention mayof course be manufactured separately from the aircraft and the wheelsthat in use would be connected to the landing gear. Thus the inventionfurther provides a landing gear suitable for use as the landing gear ofthe aircraft described herein with reference to any of the aspects ofthe invention. The landing gear may for example not be provided with therest of the aircraft or any wheels.

According to the present invention there is also provided means forconverting a conventional landing gear into a landing gear according toany aspects of the invention as described herein, wherein the meansincludes at least one noise reducing element. The means may for examplebe one or more fairing elements or one or more components that arestreamlined in shape. The noise reducing element may be in the form of anoise reduction fairing as described herein.

The present invention also provides a method of reducing noise caused bylanding gear on an aircraft including a step of manufacturing a landinggear according to any aspects of the invention as described herein. Themethod may for example include a step of modifying an existing design inorder to reduce noise caused by the landing gear.

There is yet further provided a method of flying an aircraft during theapproach on landing of the aircraft, the method including a step ofusing one or more components of the aircraft landing gear to reduce thenoise generated by the interaction of the landing gear and the airflowing past the landing gear, wherein the landing gear is in accordancewith any of the aspects of the invention mentioned herein. The one ormore components of the aircraft landing gear may for example be in theform of a noise reduction fairing as described herein.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way ofexample with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings of which:

FIG. 1 a is a diagrammatic side view illustration of a prior art mainlanding gear;

FIG. 1 b is a diagrammatic cross-section of the main landing gear shownin FIG. 2 a;

FIG. 1 c is a diagrammatic cross-section of a main landing gearaccording to a first embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 a is a diagrammatic perspective view of a main landing gear withan undertray fitted in accordance with a second embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 2 b is a schematic diagram illustrating the function of a part ofthe undertray shown in FIG. 2 a;

FIG. 2 c is a schematic diagram showing the functioning of a thirdembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 a is a diagrammatic side view illustration of an inverted nosegear according to a fourth embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 3 b is a diagrammatic cross-section section of the nose gear shownin FIG. 3 a.

The embodiments of the invention as described herein all relate to anaircraft landing gear movable between a stored position and a deployedposition, the landing gear being suitable for use on an aircraftdesigned to carry more than 100 passengers and being so arranged that inits deployed position it is configured to reduce the noise generated bythe interaction of the landing gear and the air flowing past the landinggear. The same reference numbers are therefore used in relation tofeatures common to all of the embodiments.

FIG. 1 a shows a main landing gear 121 according to a prior artconstruction. The gear includes a leg 102 comprising an oleo cylinder104 that accommodates an oleo strut 103 positioned beneath. The strut103 is coupled to the wheels 108 via a bogie 109. FIG. 1 b is across-section taken along the line Y-Y and shows the oleo cylinder 104surrounded by various service pipes/conduits/cables 110. FIG. 1 c is across-section of a main landing gear 21 according to a first embodimentof the invention, the cross-section being at an equivalent location tothe line Y-Y to illustrate the differences between the prior artconstruction shown in FIG. 1 a and 1 b and the first embodiment. Thereare two legs 2 a, 2 b, the legs being parallel to each other, spacedapart and aligned in the direction of travel, which is indicated by thearrow A. All service pipes/conduits/cables 10 and other such servicesare provided between the two legs 2. The legs 2 and the services 10 aresurrounded by a fairing 11, that is oval in shape, the long axis of theoval being aligned with the direction of travel of the aircraft. Thearea presented to the airflow as viewed in the direction of travel ofthe leg 2 is therefore less compared to the area presented by the leg102 of the prior art construction. Also, noise generated by the services110 previously positioned around the leg 102 is reduced by moving theservices 10 out of the air flow. The two legs 2 a, 2 b each include ashock absorber in the form of an oleo strut and cylinder assembly. Theshock absorber of the front leg 2 a has different shock absorbingproperties from the rear leg 2 b. The ability of the legs 2 to havedifferent shock absorbing properties reduces the structural need fortorque links and trimming of the wheels. Thus, the noise that wouldotherwise be generated by the components required for reacting torquesand for providing the trimming capability may be reduced.

According to a second embodiment, shown in FIGS. 2 a and 2 b there isprovided an aircraft main landing gear 1 with an undertray 18 fitted.The undertray 18 includes a fairing 11 that has a central air intakevent 19, that is connected via an air duct 20 to an air exhaust 22. Theair intake vent 19 is positioned at the stagnation point on the leadingedge of the undertray 18 and is in the form of a ram air intake. The airintake 19, air duct 20, and air exhaust 22 of the fairing areillustrated schematically in FIG. 2 b. As can be seen in FIG. 2 b, theair duct 20 includes a narrowed region 23 that acts as a venturi tube.During flight, air enters the intake 19 and is directed down the duct20. The airflow speeds up as it flows through the venturi tube 23 andthe air then exits with high speed from the exhaust 22. The exhaust 22is shaped as a diffuser that causes the air to exit in the form of anair curtain 24 (see FIG. 2 a), which acts as a virtual (air) fairing.The air exhaust 22 is shaped and configured such that the air curtain 24forms a shape that diverts air away from the adjacent wheel 8 a. Thus,the high speed air curtain 24 that is exhausted from the diffuser 22takes precedence over the lower speed air passing the wheel 8 a, thehigh speed air maintaining its (virtual) fairing shape, thus shieldingthe wheel 8 a and reducing noise that would otherwise arise from theinteraction of the lower speed air and the wheel 8 a. The outlet of theair exhaust 22 is in the form of a relatively elongate slot and has anarea that is significantly less than the area of the opening at the ramair intake 19.

A third embodiment of the invention is illustrated schematically by FIG.2 c. The third embodiment operates in a manner very similar to that ofthe second embodiment, in that an air curtain 24 is formed by means of afairing 18 having a ram air intake 19 and an air exhaust 22. However,the third embodiment differs from the second, in that the air curtain 24is not formed by the air exhausted from the air exhaust 22; instead (ascan be seen in FIG. 2 c) an extra intake opening is provided in the formof a diffuser intake 25, which forms the air curtain 24. The operationof the fairing 18 of the third embodiment may be understood as follows.Air enters the ram air intake 19, passes along the duct 20 and increasesin speed as it flows through the venturi tube 23 and then passes out ofthe exhaust 22 with very high speed. The air pressure just beyond theventuri tube 23 is, as a result of the high speed airflow, lower thanthe exterior of the fairing 18 and thus, air is drawn through thediffuser intake 25. (In other words, the air is sucked through thediffuser intake 25 by air being drawn down the fairing intake 25 to jointhe high speed air created by the air flowing from the ram air intake 19through the venturi 23 and out of the exhaust 22). The shape of thediffuser intake 25 is similar to the diffuser air exhaust 22 describedwith reference to the second embodiment in that it is in the form of agenerally elongate slot. Thus, the air that is drawn into the diffuserintake 25 forms an air curtain 24 that is used to divert slower airflowaway from noise generating parts of the landing gear.

FIG. 3 a is a schematic diagram illustrating the principles of operationand design of a nose landing gear 1 according to a fourth embodiment ofthe invention. The gear 1 is shown in its deployed position and includesa central leg 2 comprising an oleo strut 3 and an oleo cylinder 4, whichreceives the oleo strut 3. The oleo strut and cylinder form a pneumaticshock absorber in a manner known in the art. The entire oleo strut 3 ishoused within the landing gear bay 5, within the fuselage 6. Theembodiment differs from prior art constructions in that the oleo strutand cylinder have been inverted, in that the aircraft body is coupled tothe wheels via the strut 3 and then the cylinder 4. A cross-sectiontaken along the line X-X is shown in FIG. 3 b, which shows the ovalcross-sectional shape of the oleo cylinder 4. The long axis of the ovalis aligned with the direction of travel of the aircraft, which isindicated by the arrow A in FIG. 3 a. The oleo cylinder 4 is thereforemore streamlined in shape than the conventional circular cross-sectionalshape. The oleo strut 3 has a circular cross-section and is snuglyreceived within an interior surface also having a circular cross-sectionof the cylinder 4. Providing the strut 3 on top of the cylinder 4 andtherefore within the landing gear bay 5 allows other components thatwould otherwise contribute to unwanted noise production also to beplaced within the bay 5. For example, both the torque links 7 andsteering actuators 8 are positioned wholly within the landing gear bay5.

It will be appreciated that various modifications may be made to theabove-described embodiments of the invention without departing from thespirit of the invention. For example, the air exhaust of the secondembodiment may include several outlets, the outlets being arranged sothat together, during the approach on landing, they produce separatehigh speed airflows that collectively form an air curtain that acts soas to divert at least partly, air away from noise generating regions ofthe landing gear.

1-31. (canceled)
 32. An aircraft including a landing gear movablebetween a deployed position and a stowed position, wherein the landinggear includes a plurality of longitudinal load bearing supports, thesupports being arranged in parallel, and a noise reduction fairing, thelanding gear being so arranged that, in use when the landing gear is inits deployed position, the supports are arranged one behind the other inthe direction of the air flow and the noise reduction fairing at leastpartially fairs the front load bearing support.
 33. An aircraftaccording to claim 32, wherein the noise reduction fairing comprises afairing element that extends around at least two of the load bearingsupports.
 34. An aircraft according to claim 33, wherein the fairingelement encompasses at least two of the load bearing supports.
 35. Anaircraft according to claim 32, wherein the landing gear is arrangedsuch that one or more service pipes, cables, conduits, or the like, areprovided between at least two of the longitudinal load bearing supports.36. An aircraft according to claim 32, wherein the landing gear isarranged such that one or more service pipes, cables, conduits, or thelike, are provided between at least two of the longitudinal load bearingsupports and the fairing element encompasses said at least two of theload bearing supports and said one or more service pipes, cables,conduits, or the like.
 37. An aircraft according to claim 32, wherein atleast one of the load bearing supports includes a shock absorbingelement.
 38. An aircraft according to claim 32, wherein at least two ofthe load bearing supports include shock absorbing elements, and one ofthe shock absorbing elements is configured to have a different shockabsorbing capacity from at least one of the other shock absorbingelements.
 39. An aircraft according to claim 32, wherein at least two ofthe load bearing supports are configured to withstand significantlydifferent loads.
 40. An aircraft according to claim 32, wherein the loadbearing supports are arranged to support loads when the aircraft is onthe ground via wheels mounted on a bogie, and two of the load bearingsupports are arranged to be able to vary the pitch of the bogie.
 41. Anaircraft according to claim 32, wherein the plurality of longitudinalload bearing supports are so arranged that when the landing gear is inthe deployed position each load bearing support is so arranged that thelong axis of the support is substantially perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis of the aircraft.
 42. An aircraft according to claim32, wherein the plurality of longitudinal load bearing supports comprisetwo landing gear legs.
 43. An aircraft according to claim 32, whereinthe landing gear is a nose landing gear.
 44. An aircraft according toclaim 32, wherein the landing gear is a main landing gear.
 45. Anaircraft landing gear including a plurality of longitudinal load bearingsupports including a front longitudinal load bearing support and a rearlongitudinal load bearing support, the supports being arranged inparallel, and a noise reduction fairing positioned in front of the frontlanding gear support, whereby in use when the landing gear is in adeployed position on an aircraft, the supports are arranged one behindthe other in the direction of the air flow and the noise reductionfairing at least partially fairs the front load bearing support.
 46. Akit for converting a conventional aircraft into an aircraft according toclaim 32, wherein the kit includes at least one noise reduction fairing.47. A method of reducing noise caused by landing gear on an aircraftincluding a step of manufacturing a landing gear according to claim 45.48. A method according to claim 47 further including a step of modifyingan existing design in order to reduce noise caused by the landing gear.